Could You be a Great Tutor?

Do you think you have what it takes to tutor someone who is having a tough time in school? Do you have the patience and the time it takes to work with a student who is having a difficult time with a certain subject? Do you have the knowledge, and are you able to effectively communicate that information to someone who seems to have a hard time understanding even the simplest concepts? Are you friendly and able to establish a good rapport right from the start? If you answered yes to these questions, you probably do have the capability to become a good, if not great, tutor, and you will find that the service you are offering will be in big demand.

If you are a student yourself you may know of one or two people who could benefit from what you are offering. You may even have friends who are struggling but who are too embarrassed to ask for your help. Don’t wait for them to ask-make the offer! If you see that they are having a tough time, let them know that you are willing to assist them, or at least go over some of the information they don’t quite understand. You may be quite surprised at how quickly they take you up on your offer. You may not want to charge for this service if they are close friends, and that is fine, but if you are going to be doing this on a regular basis, it’s a good idea to decide on the amount you will charge other clients.

If you are new at tutoring, try not to take on more than you can handle realistically. You want to be able to achieve good results, and you can’t do this if you get overwhelmed with too many students. Until you have plenty of experience tutoring, keep the clients to a minimum if you expect to be able to help each student overcome his or her problems. You need to be able to spend time discussing, teaching, and learning the techniques needed to get over the obstacles that are standing in the way of their success, and you won’t be able to do that if you have too many pupils to work with at different times. What you can do, however, is to form a study group that is comprised of a few students who are in need of assistance.

Try to teach or tutor the one subject that you are particularly good at. Trying to tutor different subjects may sound like a good idea, especially if you have great grades in those areas, but concentrate instead on the one subject that you know well. After you have been tutoring for a time, you can begin to add other subjects if you find you have the time and the expertise in other areas. New tutors need to take their time and go slowly at first. Once you have confidence in your abilities and can show results, you can start to do more. Remember, when you are working with a paying client, they are entitled to the full benefit of your knowledge, as well as your complete attention.

You are really going to feel good once the pupil begins to show improvement because you will know that it was with your assistance that he or she is able to do this. Being able to tutor effectively is a job that you should take seriously if you expect to help someone improve academically. Don’t be discouraged, however if you don’t see results immediately. Some students catch on far quicker than others, and it is not a reflection on your tutoring methods if it takes longer for some of them. No two people learn at the same rate or pace, and expecting them to do so is a mistake on your part. Be patient. Everything will fall into place eventually. Tutoring can be a fun way to make a little extra cash, yet even more importantly, a great way to help someone out, especially if you like doing something like this. If you can’t picture yourself sitting there explaining the concepts of a troubling subject, however, no matter how much you know about it, don’t do it. It means too much to the students who really need assistance to have someone teaching them something with little or no enthusiasm.